I am not a hugger. The people who know me best are very well aware of that. I’ve mentioned it a few times in my writings so it might ring a bell to you as well. It’s not that I hate them, I just like my personal space. I also don’t want to go jump in someone else’s personal space.
It almost never pops into my brain that I should hug someone. If you’ve been offended because I didn’t hug you in a moment when you needed it or felt like I should’ve, I’m sorry. Hugs are just typically not on my radar. I can remember telling one of my dear friends that I was pregnant with my first child and she said, “Oh, I know you don’t like hugs, but I don’t care, you’re getting one.”
As I was leaving church this past Sunday a dear lady came up to me and said, “Robyn, I know you don’t like hugs, but I’m going to give you one anyway.” (If you’re reading this Ms. Norma, thank you, and you are allowed to give me hugs any time.) She gave me a compliment after that and we chatted for a second and went on our way.
A couple other friends have said something to me about hugs of late as well, acknowledging that I don’t love them. Big Brother knows, too, because my social media feed showed me a picture of a t-shirt with a cactus that says, “Not a Hugger.” I can’t wait to see what will show up after writing this post. Amazon has probably already shipped a person to my doorstep just to give me a hug.
So as I thinking about all that hug stuff, Ms. Norma’s words came back to me, “I know you don’t like hugs, but I’m going to give you one anyway.” And God used that to put this on my heart – He works the same way. He says, “I know you don’t like this, but I’m going to do it anyway.” Friends, we need to be OK with that.
We need to allow Him to get up in our personal space even if we don’t like it and it feels uncomfortable. Science says I need hugs. Whether I like them or not, they are good for my health. Apparently hugs have healing properties, especially if I lean in to the uncomfortable and allow them to last for 10 or 20 seconds.
Sometimes God asks us to do things we don’t want to do for His and our greater good. Ask Eve or Noah or Moses or Joshua or Jacob or Joseph or Daniel or Job or David or Esther or Mary or Paul. Or Jesus himself. Jesus asked God to take His responsibility away and God’s answer, fortunately for the rest of us, was basically I know you don’t like it, but I’m going to do it anyway. The difference, though, was Jesus was willing to do His Father’s will regardless. Are we?
John 15:2 says, “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” So if my math is correct, and this time I think it is because this includes both branches that do and don’t bear fruit, that’s EVERY branch. We can count on it. He’s going to make us feel uncomfortable from time to time.
Go ahead and read the rest of chapter 15 when you have time, it’s wonderful. It’s almost like a hug. We bear fruit to glorify God, and we become friends with Jesus. This chapter is a wonderful look at who Jesus is if you’re really wanting to find out.
What I really want us to remember today is that loving and serving God is not always full of happy and easy. Sometimes it’s uncomfortable. Sometimes it’s painful. Sometimes we’re rejected. Sometimes God’s answer is “no.” All that talk of receiving what we ask for is contingent on it being in God’s will. Occasionally we have to go through the darkness to get to the light. This should be expected.
When I tell my children they can’t stay up late, it’s not because I want to ruin their fun. It’s because I know they need the sleep. God does the same thing with us. My children frequently complain about having to do homework. I get it. No one wants to do it. My youngest asked me just this morning why I care so much about homework. I said, “Because it’s how you learn and it’s your job.” Complaining doesn’t get them out of it, it just makes us all frustrated and they have to do it anyway. How often are we guilty of doing the same thing to God?
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE a good dose of love and encouragement, but sometimes I need to remember that I can upset God. I can actually be guilty of complaining, dragging my feet, or telling Him “no” when He’s pruning or asking me to do something that I don’t want to do. That doesn’t make Him the bad guy – it makes me wrong. It means I delay the good things He has for me. My “no” response to Him doesn’t stop His will, it just stops His blessing for me.
If Ms. Norma hadn’t given me that hug anyway, I might have walked on without the compliment that went with it. I would have cheated her out of a chance to be a blessing to me. I might have left church too soon and been in an accident. I wouldn’t have been receptive to this message, and I’m certain that someone reading this needs it, too.
When God says, “I know you don’t like it, but I’m going to do it anyway” let Him. It’s actually going to be good for you.
